I love you, Mary
by grandvizier527
Summary: The Sunderland couple's last days before James goes to Silent Hill, from James' POV. Written by my twin brother. He and I would certainly appreciate the reviews!
1. Part 1

James flinched as Mary hacked out a particularly dreadful cough. He could see her contorted expression of pain past the tissue she held to her face. "Are you alright…?" James's voice fell quiet after Mary began to respond.

"Don't worry about me! I'm fine. Just pay attention to the road." Mary insisted. James rolled his eyes to convey his annoyance, but as he did, he thought he caught a glimpse of his wife's beautiful smile. The one she did when he tried to be helpful, to show her appreciation for the effort.

"I'm sorry you had to take time off of work to do this, but I just didn't think I could get here myself." Mary said softly before coughing a little again. "Don't worry about it." James said flatly. "I'll bet it's nothing anyway."

James drove up the parking garage and found a space after 2 floors of searching. James parked and got out, moving to the passenger side to help Mary out.

"James, it's not that bad. When I fell back at the house, I just lost my balance, that's all." But as Mary said that, she went into another coughing fit, nearly doubling over. James steadied her back up and held her hand, holding her fingers in his palm. Mary accepted her husband's offer, and the young couple made their way to the elevator.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Sunderland, I'm doctor Calig." The doctor was tall, but not quite as much as James, with a thin face and South Asian (Indian, perhaps?) features. James shook his hand and introduced him to Mary. Dr. Calig took extensive notes as Mary explained her symptoms.

"I don't think I went anyway unsanitary, but one morning I just woke up and had this terrible cough. I took some typical cold medicine, cough drops, decongestants…but nothing worked. It's been like this for about 4 weeks now. I haven't gone out in a while, so that I didn't spread it to anyone."

"Has James been the only one in contact with you since your symptoms began?"

"Yes". James answered.

"And coughing has been your only symptom? There's no soreness in your throat or pain swallowing?"

"No. Nothing like that." Said Mary.

"Hm…well, I'd like to get some throat cultures to see if we can find any pathogens responsible, just in case." Calig said. "Nowadays, those _Streptococcus _folks can be a bit sneaky." Calig chuckled to himself. "Sorry, just silly doctor humor. I'll get back to you shortly."

"Hi there, I'm back!" Dr. Calig said cheerfully, although not quite the same gusto as before. "It seems that…the tests came back negative. I'd like to a second one…that's usually what we do as standard procedure." Calig explained.

"It's not going to…cost extra, is it?" James asked anxiously. Mary shot him a look.

"What? No, of course not! I wouldn't charge you even if it did." Calig said quickly.

Calig left the room to call on a nurse. Mary opened her mouth to give James an earful.

"I…I know, I'm sorry…I didn't mean for it to sound like that…" James said sheepishly.

"You sounded like you cared more about your wallet instead of me!" Mary wasn't shouting, but James felt like she was. But he also heard the hurt tone in her voice.

"Mary, you know I would never think of you like that." James said firmly. Mary nodded, releasing him from his debt.

Another test went by. Calig came back in.

"Well, it came back negative _again. _Don't worry, though, we aren't going to send you home still coughing." Calig said cheerfully. He wrote out a prescription for some weird drug James couldn't pronounce.

"Mary, you need to take these twice a day-once in the morning and once sometime between dinner and bedtime." Calig turned to James.

"If nothing improves in 2 weeks, I would advise that she come back her for more tests."

"What kind of tests? James asked.

Calig's expression changed to a more serious tone. "Um…most like a chest radiograph-that's just fancy talk for an X-ray."

Mary had a worried look on her face. James didn't want his wife getting upset in front of the doctor. Calig spoke again:

"Look, like I said, some of the respiratory pathogens we deal with are just a little trickier to pin down. Whatever it is, it can't hide for very long. I'm fully confident in these drug's ability to kill it."

"Thank you, doctor". Mary brightened a little. James rose up and opened the door for his wife.

James stopped for a moment as he walked down the hallway. "Uh, Mary, can you wait there a sec? I uh…gotta go…" James said quietly.

Mary smiled and chuckled a little. "Go on, then." She said. James flashed his wife a smile as he turned and walked back down the hall to the bathrooms.

Rounding the corner, he stopped cold. About 10 steps away from him…

_"__Oh my god…._" James swallowed a bit as his heart began to beat just a little faster. In front of him was a nurse, walking slowly in heels towards him. Unlike the other nurses, she didn't like she had grandkids-she had medium length, dirty blond hair…_"__the same as me…"_

Her uniform was also…different. It looks to be…a size or so too small, James noted. Her top button was also undone…James's head nearly betrayed him as his eyes struggled to follow the woman's cleavage.

_Don't look back, _a voice in head said. _Do you know how much shit Mary would do to you if….? _The voice added. James shuddered at the thought of Mary even suspecting. But…

_"__god, she's so hot…"_

James turned around to look at the nurse from behind. He was not disappointed. He back up, remembering his need to use the bathroom. But the nurse had one last surprise for him.

In an instant, she turned her head towards him. "_SHIT, she saw me!"_ James thought. That's what he got for messing around….

But the nurse wasn't angry. She simply did one thing before turning back and continuing on her way.

She flashed a smile. A nice little smirk, that said, _enjoying the view? So am I… _James recovered his senses and entered the restroom.

For the next hour or so as he drove Mary home, only she was on his mind…


	2. Part 2

PART 2

It had been 3 days since their visit to the doctor.

James had woken up, uncomfortable from the position he was in. He turned over to check on his wife…

Huh? Oh, that's right-James was sleeping on the couch in the living room. Mary insisted on it-she didn't want him to catch whatever she had.

James heard a quiet cough coming from the bedroom. He sighed, staring down at the floor. "_I just can't let her suffer like that", _he thought. He rose and entered the bedroom.

"Mary? Are you okay? James asked in a quiet voice.

"I'm fine, honey. Mary said this, and immediately went into another coughing fit. James's expression grew more worried. He drew closer to her.

"No. Don't come near me!" Mary demanded angrily. James stopped, taken aback by the tone of her voice.

"I'm sorry-I just-"James started to say.

"James, please…I know you want to help, but I don't want you to get sick… I would feel terrible if…"Mary's voice began to break into tears.

"I'm _so_ sorry I yelled at you-I didn't mean, please don't be angry at me." Mary begged. James shook his head.

"No, no, don't cry, Mary…it's okay…you're tired. Go back to sleep. I'll out there if you need me." James turned to leave, but said one more thing.

"We're gonna get through this. I love you."

"I love you too." Mary replied, wiping her eyes.

James went back to the living room, stretching himself. He couldn't get back to sleep. The couch just felt uncomfortable. _"__I guess the best thing to do is…" _James reached for the remote.

The TV blared out a stupid car commercial with an angry sounding man ranting about how low his prices were. James winced and quickly lowered the volume. He started flipping through channel's, until one caught his eye…

It was a woman in a Victoria's secret ad. James nervously glanced back at the bedroom. _"__No, not while she's in there sick." _James told himself. This time, there would be no indulging himself. He turned to the channel most likely to help him fall to sleep-ah, there's C-Span…

James and Mary sat in the waiting room. James always hated being in here. All the sterile smells and ugly sick people. Why did they even keep them all together if they could get each other sick? Whatever…

"MARY SUNDERLAND." The loud, emotionless nurse's voice boomed.

The couple got up and started for the door.

Inside the room, Dr. Calig sat down with them.

"Well well, if it isn't you two! How have you been?" He asked cheerfully.

"Mary's….she's still got the coughing." James said softly.

Dr. Calig's smile faded. His brow furrowed.

"No change at all?" He asked Mary.

"It's not getting any worse….but not any-"Mary's voice was interrupted by another cough.

"Easy there. Let's get you to the X-ray room." Calig helped her up.

James followed after them.

James watched as Mary stood in front of the flat surface for the X-ray beam to project onto. A sharp buzzing sound came one when the doctor turned on the switch. James watched attentively. Moments later, the sound stopped.

After the test, they returned to their patient room. After waiting in silence for what seemed like an eternity, Dr. Calig went back in. His face looked grim.

"I think it's necessary we do a bronchoscopy next." Dr. Calig said simply.

James sat outside the examination room anxiously. He glanced at the door, waiting for something. Anything. Anything that would save him of his worry….

After half an hour, Dr. Calig exited with another doctor. "Hello Mr. Sunderland, I'm Dr. Barrows." The man said. James shook his hand. "I'm a…" Barrows started to say something, but Calig shot him a look.

"Mr. Sunderland, please come to my office."

"We've given your wife a throughout examination…and…we found…a _pair of tumors_ on her right lung…as well as _cancerous cells_ in one of her _lymph nodes_…we believe it may have already _spread to her heart."_

James's jaw dropped in shock. He felt the world around him go dark and cold. As if someone had taken a huge weapon and slammed it down on him. In a few moments, his hands started to shake. He felt numb and silent on the outside, but inside, his mind screamed a hideous, black noise.

"She's at stage 3…there's no way we can operate on her at this point…we're looking at a terminal case." Dr. Barrows said the last 2 words very softly, as if afraid to say them for fear of someone overhearing.

James sat in silence for about a minute. Then he spoke:

"Mary's…going to…_die?" _He asked. Dr. Calig stared at the floor.

"You…you must be _joking!" _James said desperately. His eyes began to water, and a lump grew in his throat.

"I'm very sorry." Barrows said sympathetically.

"But you're a doctor…it's your job to heal people!" James said loudly. "How can you just let her _die?" _James cried out.

"Please, calm down. As her doctor, I promise I'll do everything I can. But… there's still no effective treatment for her condition." Barrows replied.

"How long does she have?" James asked numbly. He almost couldn't hear the words he was saying.

"I'm afraid I'm not sure…3 years at the most, perhaps 6 months….it's impossible to say with certainty." Dr. Barrows said.

James sat there, unable to move. Finally, something seemed to snap in him, and he began to cry. He buried his face in his hands and cried into the tissues on Dr. Barrow's desk. Dr. Barrows and Dr. Calig sat there, saying nothing, allowing James to have this moment of grieving uninterrupted.


	3. Part 3

PART 3

James woke up from his state of shock to the sounds of Dr. Calig. He never really blacked out, but he also wasn't really there either.

"Where am I?" James asked.

"After we told you about your wife's condition, you entered a state of extreme shock." Dr. Calig said. James realized he hadn't moved.

"How long was I….?" His voice faded, hoarse from sobbing.

"Only a minute or so." Dr. Calig continued:

"James…I know what Dr. Barrows said…but that doesn't mean it's a guarantee…if we start treatment now…we might be able to prevent it from spreading, at least. One of the tumors is small…we might be able to…" Dr. Calig seemed desperate to grasp at hope.

James spoke. "But…will she still…?"

Dr. Calig realized he had to be honest with James. "It's not very likely at all she'll survive. Less than 10%, statistically….but…we won't leave her to die. We'll take care of her to the end."

James's face didn't change.

"Do you want me to get the necessary paperwork to begin immedia-"

"Yes." James said blankly. The 2 sat there in silence. James spoke again:

"I'll tell her."

It became a routine. Every week, James and would drive Mary to the hospital. Every week, another round of chemo and some radiation. They would get progress reports on how it seemed to be going. Mary would come home from every treatment more exhausted than when she first arrived, sometimes falling asleep before James pulled into the parking lot of their apartment.

The first 2 weeks were routine.

But then something unexpected happened.

"James, you don't have to stay with me this time if you don't want to." Mary said between moderate coughs.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. You're stressed out. Go down to the McDonald's on the first floor and get yourself a nice burger." James chuckled quietly.

"Want me to get you something?" James asked.

"Just a bottled water for when the chemo's done." She said softly.

"Ok. I'll be back." He leaned down and kissed her on the cheek before leaving.

James strolled towards the elevator and pressed the button. The doors soon opened and James stepped in. The doors were about to close when…

_Oh…_

_That Nurse…_

Was it…yes. The very same nurse who…

This time she seemed to be in a much more modest uniform, however. She gave him a slight smile. James smiled back, but his mind was ablaze with anxiety.

_"__Was she trying to flirt with me the first time? Why isn't she now? Did I just imagine it?" _James's head was spinning. Her image consumed his mind. But…

_"__I can't do that to Mary…I could never…" _But she seemed harder and harder to resist. She stood there with her back to him, as if waiting for him…_what did she want?_

His heart was pounding. He couldn't just stand here any longer. In desperation, he opened his mouth to say something….

The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. The mesmerizing nurse stepped out onto her floor. She turned and went down the hall without saying a word. James fought the urge to watch her leave. He picked another floor.

James headed back to Mary, his stomach recently filled with McDonald's. But something was wrong…

"James, did you forget to bring me some water?" Mary sighed and shook her head. James's face froze in surprise.

"Oh! Mary, I'm so sorry…" He started to say.

"It's ok, James…you're always so forgetful." She said teasingly. But then she coughed harshly again. James frowned.

That disease wouldn't let them have even a moment of peace.

Not even a moment.

It was evening. James was taking a shower while Mary was already in bed. James stared at the tiles as the water pounded his hair. Even though Mary was just in the next room, not being able to hold like he used to make it seem like she was so far away…

James stepped out of the shower and dried himself off. By the time he had changed into his pj's and t-shirt, Mary seemed asleep. James tried to slip into bed without disturbing her.

"Mmpf…James, honey, you left the light on in the bathroom." James rolled his eyes and got back up to turn out the light. He landed on his side of the bed with a thud. Mary started coughing again.

"You okay?" James asked.

"Yeah…the drugs are just making me tired…James, tomorrow, we need to…" Mary paused to cough heavily again.

"We need to go to the department store to get us a wig." Mary finished. James tried to change the subject.

"Yeah, ok honey…don't worry about that now…just let me get close to you…"

"James…" Mary said softly.

James scooted his body closer towards Mary's. He whispered softly into her ear:

"I can make the pain go away, Mary." James said in a seductive voice. James knew Mary loved the sound of his voice.

"James. _Stop." _Mary said firmly. The coughing gripped her again, and she nearly twitched and bumped into James from the force.

"James, I just can't do that with you anymore-I get nauseous and tired just walking from the car." Mary said sadly.

James felt ashamed. Here was his dying wife, and all he cared about was satisfying himself.

"I'm sorry. I won't do that again." James said.

"No, James, _I'm _sorry…" Mary sounded like she was crying, but her coughing got caught up in the tears.

James gently took Mary's hand and held it in his. She turned over to face him. Tears were in her eyes as James spoke to her:

"Sh...don't cry sweetie. I love you, so, _so_ much. Just being with you makes me happy. Don't cry, Mary…"

_You'll be done soon anyway._

James startled himself at the thought that appeared in his head. He quickly pushed it out, but then the memory of the nurse came back…

James woke up to the sound of Mary's coughing. James angrily shot a glance at his sleeping wife. _Did she just HAVE to cough so LOUD? _He thought angrily. His rage lasted only a second, however, before he regretted his thought.

_"__I'm so tired, but I can't sleep…maybe…maybe I need to get something to eat."_

James got up as quietly as he could, and made his way to the kitchen. He got out some bread and started to make himself a sandwich. After the sandwich was cobbled together, he sat down in front of the TV. _"__Looks like another night of C-Span and sleeping on the couch again." _James thought. He flipped through the channels to find it…

He stopped at an ad for some stupid thing or other featuring a pretty girl. In fact, she looked a lot like the nurse from the hospital. James's hand tightened into a fist. _Why couldn't Mary just let him have a little fun? _

"We're married, for Christ's sake._" _James scowled to himself. He turned the TV off. This kind of junk would just make him angry with Mary. James thought as he drifted off to sleep…

_"__If I just had a good drink…"_

1 month since the diagnosis. Dr. Barrows didn't know how to put it gently to the Sunderlands.

"Mrs. Sunderland…I'm afraid your condition has worsened slightly. The smaller tumor has increased in size, and more lymph nodes have been infected." He said in a small voice.

James held Mary in his arms as she began to cry.

"Mr. Sunderland, we believe it would be best to put Mary into palliative care. We can reserve a bed for her soon." He added. James looked straight into the doctor's eyes with an intense, green eyed stare.

"That's IT, then?!" James raised his voice. "There's NOTHING you can do? I just have to…watch her..."  
>James started to choke up. He began to sob with his wife, unable to look at her face because he was blinded by his tears. Even Dr. Barrows, who had seen several terminal cases, began to wipe his eyes.<p>

"I-I'm sorry…Mr. Sunderland." Dr. Barrows said.

But all James could here was the voice in his head. The same voice from before.

_She'll die. Die. Die. Die. She's already dead. She's dead. Why couldn't you save her? _

_You FAILED, James. _

_Die, Die, Die, Die. _James saw it written in blood in the Darkness that Lurked in his Mind. He thought he heard a sound…

James snapped out of it. 

"I'm sorry, James…" Mary said softly.

"I love you, Mary." James said softly.

James arrived home. Alone. Mary had to stay at the hospital for treatment. He had agreed to visit her the next day.

James was devastated. Mary wasn't even living anymore. Just a corpse that spoke to him. He sat down on the couch, his face buried in his hands. He needed something, _anything _to get this pain off his mind…

James rose up. A sudden, quick impulse overtook him. He got in his car. The gas station was only a few miles away….

James browsed through the aisles, looking for his favorite beer. He hurriedly looked at each shelf. _No, no, no…c'mon, dammit, where is it!?_

He didn't want to think about what he knew would happen. James only wanted the pain to go away. Even a hint of it creeping onto his mind.

He paused when he saw the brand he wanted. The white bottle seemed to glisten like a magic potion, promising to make everything better. James seemed to lose control of his movements as he seemed to watch himself take it in his hand, and within moments he walking out of the store with the bottle in a bag and some loose change in his pocket.

But James knew he couldn't just drink with nothing to look at. Maybe the movie rental place was still open…?

James sat in front of the TV, watching some ridiculous piece of crap movie he bought at the video store. James could barely pay attention to what was happening, as he took another sip.

_"__An entire bottle…yeah…I'll drink the whole thing…when's the last time I did that? I don't think I've ever…" _James's mind became too foggy to remember.

James wasn't someone that usually drunk heavily. Sure, he got completely hung over a few times before, but he always woke up with vomit and regret. After those experiences, he didn't really care much for the practice. After his marriage, the only alcohol he drank was a few glasses of wine with Mary on special occasions.

The beer tasted awful, but James couldn't stop. It seemed to temper something inside him…when the alcohol was in his bloodstream, he didn't have to think about Mary dying. He could pretend he was married to the woman on the screen. Yeah, bet she'd never complain about him coming home late. Never say no when he needed to be intimate with her…never get _sick…_

Something stirred itself in James's consciousness. He thought he heard a sound. What was that…?

It was Mary's cough. It sounded really bad. Was she in pain? James's face turned dark. That cough was starting to get annoying. _"__Could she at least TRY to keep it down? She's not the only one in the damn building!" _James thought angrily. He had half a mind to get up and tell her to keep it down. But the beer coaxed him back down from his rage. The woman on the TV refocused his attention on her. Not that he could really see what was going on in the movie. James felt tired…

_Mary…_

_I love you, Mary…_

_Wait…Mary's…back at the hospital…_

_So why did I hear…?_


	4. Part 4

Part 4

James woke up to the light of proud and merciless sun. A beam of light pierced his eyes as he rubbed them awake.

"OH!" James groaned. An awful headache was throbbing in his head. Like a python wrapping itself around his cranium and twitching violently. James felt a violent churning in his stomach.

Uh oh…

After his stomach had been emptied. James swallowed 6 Tylenol pills before getting his bearings. His blanket on the couch had fallen to the floor, and the small amount of his beer that he didn't drink was spilled out onto the floor and had stained the carpet. The bottle lay on the floor, as if lying prostrate in shame for what it did. James felt his clothes were stained with sweat. He wanted to be clean, but he also couldn't bear getting up and taking a shower with that headache. His need to clean himself up prevailed as the pain medication went to work. James slowly rose and made his way to the bathroom.

2 hours later, James felt much better. He had on a nice clean change of clothes and a stomach full of food. But something didn't seem…

"What? Oh no, I forgot about Mary!" James shouted aloud as he saw the clock. Although they hadn't agreed on the exact time, James promised it would be sometime before lunch. The clock read 1:30. And it'd take another 10 minutes to get to the hospital…

_"__Well, if I'm late, I might as well make it up to her…maybe…yeah, that's a good idea…"_

"Mary…" James said cautiously as he peaked into the hospital room at 2:00 PM. He knew she was going to be mad, but he was desperate to make her happy.

"What do you want, James?" Mary barked. James recoiled a bit. It'd only been a day, but he wasn't ready to remember as she really was. Mary's skin was blotchy and discolored, with her skin in wrinkles and her body in a hospital bed. Her voice seemed hoarse and weak, but there was no mistaking the tone of anger in her voice.

"I uh, bought you some flowers…" James said sheepishly. He held out a little bouquet of mixed flowers.

"Flowers? I don't want any damn flowers!" Mary shouted. James heard the heart monitor beep a little faster. "Just go home already." She said, turning her face away from him?

"Mary, what are you saying?" James said gently, trying to calm her.

"Look! I'm disgusting. I don't deserve flowers. Between the disease and the drugs, I look like a monster." Mary shut her eyes, as if trying to escape her own body. At the word "monster", James felt a resurge of guilt for not being there for her. To make her feel beautiful.

"What are you looking at? Just go home already." Mary cried. James's mouth dropped open in shock. He took a step back. "Leave me alone already!" Mary said again. James didn't move.

"I'm no use to anyone. I'll be dead soon anyway… Maybe today, maybe tomorrow …it'd be easier if they just kill me. But I guess the hospital is making a nice profit off me, they want to keep me alive… " Mary ranted. James stared at the floor. "_She doesn't mean that, she can't…maybe it's something in those drugs." _

"Are you still here? I told you to go! Are you deaf?!" Mary shouted. James gave Mary a desperate look, begging her with his eyes not to make him leave. "Don't come back." Mary said, rejecting him. Crushed and not understanding why his wife was saying this to him, James turned to leave…

"James! Wait! Please don't go! Stay with me! Don't leave me alone! Mary broke into sobbing. "I didn't mean what I said." James immediately rushed to her side, holding her hands and awkwardly hugging her. "Please James. Tell me I'll be okay. Tell me I'm not going to die….help me…" Mary couldn't speak any longer, and simply cried in his arms. James was crying too, and could only hold her, hug her, and gently kiss her as the couple stayed together for nearly 8 hours…

Alone in his apartment, James felt drained of every shred of joy his life once had. Everything he and Mary had done together seemed like a distant dream. Mary was fading away. And there was nothing he could do.

James hit the bottle again this time complemented by a trip to the adult movie store. He hated indulging in these vices, but it felt like it was all he could do to make himself forget. Yet still he thought of the void that Mary used to fill:

"_What am I supposed to do without Mary? I can't replace her…and I can't forget about her. How long is she going to be suffering like this? _

_"__Why did you have get sick, Mary? I LOVED you. We were going to be happy together. I had plans for us…why did you leave me?"_

James stared longingly and the woman on the screen. _"__Help me feel like a man again." _James thought, projecting his will onto his false fantasy, now having form. James pressed he liquor bottle to his face, feeling the smooth curves…the kind he wanted to feel again. He clutched the bottle tightly as he ravenously poured the contents into his throat.

He had his salvation snugly as he tried to sleep. But his mind wouldn't let him.

_"__You tell me to leave? I'm not good enough for you? After all I've done for you! And all I've spent on you! You didn't pay a damn thing back. The wedding, the apartment, the food, the clothes, the…"_

James didn't even want to say the last word. The hospital bills had to be paid by him, his father, and the Shepherd family. His father had called yesterday, saying he wouldn't be able to help him pay for it anymore. He was worried the Shepherds would have similar impairments, since he found out they had recently lost one of their own sons.

The money was almost gone.

_"__But I can't just…what do I do?" _He still had a few thousand emergency savings, but that would only get her through a month, at the most…

"Maybe…if Mary…has to die…at least I can make it peaceful for her." James said aloud. She didn't need to die in a sterile, ugly hospital. Somewhere peaceful…where the last memory could be a happy one…

"Am…I hearing this correctly? You're want to bring her home? But she needs to be here to have the radiation administered. I don't understand what…"

But then Dr. Barrows realized what James wanted to do. He wanted his wife to die with dignity. In peace, knowing she was loved.

"Mr. Sunderland…you do realize it would take some time for the cancer to actually…until the last second, it could be a very painful and awful experience for her final hours." Dr. Barrows explained.

"I understand the problem. But it doesn't matter. I…can't afford treatment, and the insurance isn't enough anymore. I'm down to just a few thousand." James said with no trace of emotion.

Dr. Barrows nodded. He understood fully now. He knew technically he could object, force his wife to stay and get more treatment, but it was a moot point. He'd seen many cases like hers before. It would be better this time…to at least let her pass in a quiet, beautiful place.

"Alright Mr. Sunderland. We'll have her discharged. I…understand. I also lost someone like this…" his voice faded before he spoke again:

"Whatever happens, take care, Mr. Sunderland."

"I will." James rose to shake his hand. Thank you for everything…"

Dr. Barrows started to open his mouth, but said nothing. James turned without a word and left his office.

"I'm sorry we couldn't save her." Dr. Barrows whispered as he turned to the picture on his desk. "I'm sorry I couldn't save _you." _

James returned home and waited for a few minutes. He got the call: "James…I've got…something to tell you."

"What is it, Mary?" James said, pretending to be surprised.

"The doctor said I could come home tomorrow. I'll be able to stay with you for a little while." Mary said. Her voice was still sad, but held a trace of joy.

"Really?! That's great!" James said.

"James, I'm so happy knowing I'll be able to see you again…" Mary said, holding back tears.

"Mary, I have an idea…while we've got a break, why don't I take you somewhere special?" James suggested.

"Where, James?"

"How about…our special place?" James said.

"Special place? Do you mean…"

"Lakeview Hotel." James finished.

"Oh, James! That would be just _wonderful…" _Mary said between tears. James smiled and started to cry on his end of the phone, but stopped when he heard that hacking, awful, blood curdling cough. James's face darkened.

"Mary, I love you so much." He said.

But now, he wasn't so sure if he meant it.


	5. Part 5

Part 5

The hotel was nothing supremely fancy, but it was nice anyway. The best part about it was the stuff to do there. James insisted on take his camera, so that they (but really he) could relive their old happy memories.

"Wow, it hasn't changed a bit, has it?" Mary remarked. It certainly seemed nice. A little old, but it hadn't lost any of its charm.

"It'd be great if we saw anybody we knew." James said eagerly. Unfortunately, there was nobody familiar. Oh well. The hotel was popular with Canadian tourists visiting the border regions for various reasons. Silent Hill sort of had that quaint charm to it. James and Mary went up to the front desk and paid for their room. They had arrived a little late in the day, but James knew there were still some things they could do.

James and Mary were out on a boat over Toluca Lake. Every other weekend in the late summer, the _Tiny Duchess _would be filled with food, drinks, and live music. Guests would be invited to dine out on the lake shore and take turns riding the boat. The upper deck even had dancing. James and Mary sat on the lake shore, watching the more active guests board the boat to dance around. James and Mary smiled and mostly talked:

"They dance so crazy nowadays. Did we ever do stuff like _that?" _Mary asked, pointing at some people out on the boat. James chuckled.

"I _do _remember you were the one who wanted to dance at that party. I didn't want to because I didn't want to laugh at how stupid I looked."

"Aw, James…you did fine. You were just shy about the whole thing." Mary teased.

"Yeah…well, actually…" James had a wicked smile on his face.

"What? You're not seriously…James, I can't move around like I used to. I don't want to be coughing on the other guests." Mary said, looking for excuses.

"But you haven't coughed badly since this morning. C'mon, please?" Why not have…" James stopped and froze. He didn't want to remind his wife that this might be the last time they ever dance together.

Mary looked a little sad remembering not even the festivities could soften death. But then she had a look of determined resolve. "James…you're right. We're gonna get on that boat and dance our hearts out. Forget what happens tomorrow. Let's enjoy this while we can." Mary said firmly. James beamed.

The couple made their way on to the boat on its next round. All of the songs were songs they had never even heard of, or new the moves to. But they didn't care. Everyone else watched in awe as this couple made up new moves all on their own. Pretty soon, everyone on the boat had joined in.

After half an hour or so of nonstop moving, the Sunderlands headed back to shore. Much to James' relief, Mary's coughing was at a minimum. Tired and exhausted, they head back to their room, 312.

James, still in a playful mood, turned on the camera to film Mary. Mary shook her head and smiled.

"Are you taping again? C'mon." She waved him off and sat down in a chair facing out on the lake.

"I don't know why, but I just love it here. It's so peaceful. You know what I heard? This whole area used to be a sacred place…I think I can see why…it's too bad we have to leave." Mary got up and turned to face James, still filming.

"Please promise you'll take me again, James…" Mary had a slight cough come on after she finished her sentence. James smiled as he turned off the camera.

"I promise, Mary. We'll come back here someday." He said reassuringly.

Mary sighed as she changed into her pajamas and got into bed. James joined here.

"Today was great…" Mary said.

"We still have one more day before we check out." James said.

"Really? That's great. I'd love that. Mary said sleepily as she dozed off. James fell asleep, peacefully lying next to her. But it would not last.

In his state between sleep and wakefulness, James felt a sharp pressure in his mind. He couldn't get it out of his head, because it was something he wanted to hear. He had planned it since he came up with coming here, which is why he tossed and turned in agony thinking about it.

_I know what has to be done. _

_I know what I have to do._

_Tomorrow night. _

_I am going to kill Mary. _

_You won't have to suffer anymore, Mary. _

_And you won't bother me anymore, either._

Without any trace of resistance ore reluctance, James silently agreed with his mind.

"Good morning, Mary! James said cheerfully. Mary got up in a coughing fit, but fully awake.

"Whew….good morning, dear. I'm hungry already. Where can we get breakfast?"

"You wanna go to Gonzales? I'm pretty sure they still have those breakfast burritos." James said. Mary laughed.

"Breakfast burritos? Well, what the heck. Sure. That was a fun place back in the day." Mary said.

Gonzales was by far the best Mexican restaurant in Maine (at least as far as James was concerned). With a neat authentic atmosphere, TVs lining the wall covering various Spanish news channels, flags from a various states and groups in Mexico's history, and weird pictures of women James didn't understand the significance of. The same old employees were there too: Roberto, the head chef, Eduardo, the head waiter, and Ricardo as the host. Occasionally, Senor Cangrejo would come out to count his money.

Within minutes, James and Mary had their breakfast burritos and chatted all about the old days. James and Mary didn't mention the cancer. They felt it would crush the Gonzales crew's spirits too much.

After eating, they said their goodbyes. The rest of the day was fairly eventful, with trips to the Historical society. Mary wasn't feeling too well that day, so they spent most of the day sitting out in front of the lake, just staring at the water in silence.

The couple sat at a table in Café Toluca. It was the end of the day. After dinner, nothing else would need to be done. Not many people were in the restaurant, but that was how the Sunderlands wanted it to be.

"James…I just want to say, thank you. For all of this." Mary said softly.

"I'm glad you liked today." James replied. "I wanted this to be perfect."

"James…I think…I just...I don't think…" Mary could bring herself to talk about her own death. It was too hard.

"Mary, I'm gonna be honest with you…" James began:

"You and I both know that you'll be gone very soon. Maybe even be the end of the year. And I didn't want you to end your life still suffering. I want you to be happy. Everything we've been through together…I wouldn't trade it for anything." James said.

"Thank you, James." Mary was sad, but she didn't cry. There was no point.

"I'm glad our last memories can be happy, like this." Mary said.

"Me too."

It was evening. Mary was preparing for bed. James was looking out at the lake, staring into its swirling waters. The pulsating deep spoke sweet nothings into his ear, reminding him of his divine mission…

"James…are you going to bed, honey?"

"Yes." James's voice had no emotion in it.

"Okay, dear. Can you turn out the light?" James obey her request.

"Is something wrong, dear?" Mary asked. Mary suddenly seized into a violent coughing fit. A really bad one, worse than anything James had seen before. He ran to her side.

"You okay?" James said.

"I'm fine." Mary said. James helped her into bed. "Mary…I…" James almost couldn't bear to look at her, knowing what he would have to do.

"It's okay, James. I will always love you. Even when I'm gone." Mary said as her eyes closed.

"I love you, Mary."

"I love you, James."

10 minutes passed. James made sure she was completely asleep. He ran through it all in his head one last time. It never really occurred to him how he would get her out of the hotel without arousing suspicion. But he remembered there was a back entrance to the parking lot. If anyone stopped him on the way…my wife has fainted again, she gets these all the time. I'm just taking her to the hospital in town. No, I don't need any help.

James stood up, leaned over, and kissed his wife. One small kiss on her lips. He grabbed the pillow. James shut everything out of his mind. A black emptiness hung over his soul. He pushed the pillow down onto the corpse. She struggled. She made a few panicked screams, barely audible by the force of James's arms. It was dark…did she know it was him?

James's face contorted into one of pure, unrestrained rage. Hatred of himself for his actions. For his wife's illness. For his frustration. For everything he had lost. For the drinking. For everything. For an instant, he heard a new sound. A sound of a metal object being dragged across the floor. _Someone else was in the room. Getting closer, closer…_

Everything dissolved. Everything.

The sun rose. James woke up. He rose, seeing a clean, neat room. He went downstairs and checked out early. He knew it was early because the receptionist was the only one there. He went back into the room. He carried his wife down the stairs. Down to the car. He looked around. No one in sight. He put the useless husk in the trunk and closed it tight.

James drove away, feeling nothing and saying nothing. Only one feeling snapped him back into reality. He had to go to the bathroom. He remembered he could use the rest room at the observation deck down the road.

James entered the restroom. What was he doing here? Oh. Yes.

After taking care of business, James went to the sink to wash his hands. He turned the handle, feeling the water. It washed everything away. The blood, the pain, and most importantly…the memories.

When the water stopped, James stared at the mirror. His old thoughts had been erased. Replaced…

He felt a piece of paper in his hand. A letter.

It had been 3 years since she died. How could a dead person write a letter…?

"Mary…could you really be in this town?"

_In my restless dreams, I see that town._

_Silent Hill._

_You promised you would take me there again someday._

_But you never did._

_Well, I'm alone there now._

_In our special place._

_Waiting for you._

**AN: Hope you all enjoyed that! My brother's writing style is different from mine, but he intends to be a writer as well. If I'm not careful he'll outpace me :P**

**He was really fascinated by Silent Hill 2 and 3's storylines and atmosphere. I liked it, but not as much as he could, so that's why I never wrote fanfics of it :P**


End file.
